(a)Maintenance. The owner, master, or operator of each towing vessel shall maintain operative the navigational-safety equipment required by § 164.72.

(b)Failure. If any of the navigational-safety equipment required by § 164.72 fails during a voyage, the owner, master, or operator of the towing vessel shall exercise due diligence to repair it at the earliest practicable time. He or she shall enter its failure in the log or other record carried on board. The failure of equipment, in itself, does not constitute a violation of this rule; nor does it constitute unseaworthiness; nor does it obligate an owner, master, or operator to moor or anchor the vessel. However, the owner, master, or operator shall consider the state of the equipment—along with such factors as weather, visibility, traffic, and the dictates of good seamanship—in deciding whether it is safe for the vessel to proceed.

(c)Reporting. The owner, master, or operator of each towing vessel whose equipment is inoperative or otherwise impaired while the vessel is operating within a Vessel Traffic Service (VTS) Area shall report the fact as required by 33 CFR 161.124. (33 CFR 161.124 requires that each user of a VTS report to the Vessel Traffic Center as soon as practicable:

(2) Any condition on board the vessel likely to impair navigation, such as shortage of personnel or lack of current nautical charts or maps, or publications; and

(3) Any characteristics of the vessel that affect or restrict the maneuverability of the vessel, such as arrangement of cargo, trim, loaded condition, under-keel clearance, and speed.)

(d)Deviation and authorization. The owner, master, or operator of each towing vessel unable to repair within 96 hours an inoperative marine radar required by § 164.72(a) shall so notify the Captain of the Port (COTP) and shall seek from the COTP both a deviation from the requirements of this section and an authorization for continued operation in the area to be transited. Failure of redundant navigational-safety equipment, including but not limited to failure of one of two installed radars, where each satisfies § 164.72(a), does not necessitate either a deviation or an authorization.

(1) The initial notice and request for a deviation and an authorization may be spoken, but the request must also be written. The written request must explain why immediate repair is impracticable, and state when and by whom the repair will be made.

(2) The COTP, upon receiving even a spoken request, may grant a deviation and an authorization from any of the provisions of §§ 164.70 through 164.82 for a specified time if he or she decides that they would not impair the safe navigation of the vessel under anticipated conditions.

The Coast Guard published a final rule in the Federal Register on January 30, 2015, to expand the applicability of notice of arrival and automatic identification system (AIS) requirements and make related amendments regarding AIS. In that rule there is an error in the definition of Vessel Traffic Service (VTS) User and one in the AIS applicability regulation. This rule corrects those errors.

2015-01-30; vol. 80 # 20 - Friday, January 30, 2015

80 FR 5282 - Vessel Requirements for Notices of Arrival and Departure, and Automatic Identification System

This final rule is effective March 2, 2015, except for amendments to 33 CFR part 160 which become effective April 30, 2015, with the further exception of § 160.204(a)(6), which is effective April 30, 2015 through December 31, 2015; and except for §§ 160.204(a)(5)(vii), 160.205, 160.208(a) and (c), and 164.46(b) and (c), which contain collection of information requirements that have not yet been approved by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). The Coast Guard will publish a document in the Federal Register announcing the effective date of these four collection-of-information related sections. The incorporation by reference of certain publications listed in the final rule is approved by the Director of the Federal Register on March 2, 2015.

33 CFR Parts 62, 66, 101, 110, 117, 118, 151, 160, 161, 164, and 165

Summary

Consistent with statutory requirements and provisions, the Coast Guard is expanding the applicability of notice of arrival (NOA) and automatic identification system (AIS) requirements to include more commercial vessels. This final rule amends the applicability of notice of arrival requirements to include additional vessels, sets forth a mandatory method for electronic submission of NOAs, and modifies related reporting content, timeframes, and procedures. This final rule also extends the applicability of AIS requirements beyond Vessel Traffic Service (VTS) areas to all U.S. navigable waters, and requires that additional commercial vessels install and use AIS, consistent with statutory requirements, and in limited cases, the Secretary's discretionary authority. These changes will improve navigation safety, enhance our ability to identify and track vessels, and heighten our overall maritime domain awareness (MDA), thus helping us address threats to maritime transportation safety and security.

This final rule makes non-substantive changes throughout Title 33 of the Code of Federal Regulations. The purpose of this final rule is to make conforming amendments and technical corrections to Coast Guard navigation and navigable waters regulations. These changes will have no substantive effect on the regulated public.

This is a list of United States Code sections, Statutes at Large, Public Laws, and Presidential Documents, which provide rulemaking authority for this CFR Part.

The Coast Guard published a final rule in the Federal Register on January 30, 2015, to expand the applicability of notice of arrival and automatic identification system (AIS) requirements and make related amendments regarding AIS. In that rule there is an error in the definition of Vessel Traffic Service (VTS) User and one in the AIS applicability regulation. This rule corrects those errors.

2015-01-30; vol. 80 # 20 - Friday, January 30, 2015

80 FR 5282 - Vessel Requirements for Notices of Arrival and Departure, and Automatic Identification System

This final rule is effective March 2, 2015, except for amendments to 33 CFR part 160 which become effective April 30, 2015, with the further exception of § 160.204(a)(6), which is effective April 30, 2015 through December 31, 2015; and except for §§ 160.204(a)(5)(vii), 160.205, 160.208(a) and (c), and 164.46(b) and (c), which contain collection of information requirements that have not yet been approved by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). The Coast Guard will publish a document in the Federal Register announcing the effective date of these four collection-of-information related sections. The incorporation by reference of certain publications listed in the final rule is approved by the Director of the Federal Register on March 2, 2015.

33 CFR Parts 62, 66, 101, 110, 117, 118, 151, 160, 161, 164, and 165

Summary

Consistent with statutory requirements and provisions, the Coast Guard is expanding the applicability of notice of arrival (NOA) and automatic identification system (AIS) requirements to include more commercial vessels. This final rule amends the applicability of notice of arrival requirements to include additional vessels, sets forth a mandatory method for electronic submission of NOAs, and modifies related reporting content, timeframes, and procedures. This final rule also extends the applicability of AIS requirements beyond Vessel Traffic Service (VTS) areas to all U.S. navigable waters, and requires that additional commercial vessels install and use AIS, consistent with statutory requirements, and in limited cases, the Secretary's discretionary authority. These changes will improve navigation safety, enhance our ability to identify and track vessels, and heighten our overall maritime domain awareness (MDA), thus helping us address threats to maritime transportation safety and security.

This final rule makes non-substantive changes throughout Title 33 of the Code of Federal Regulations. The purpose of this final rule is to make conforming amendments and technical corrections to Coast Guard navigation and navigable waters regulations. These changes will have no substantive effect on the regulated public.